Claustrophobia
by LoveReid
Summary: "Claustrophobia is not something you make fun of Steve," Danny had told him. If only Steve had listened... When a killer traps Danny and Steve in a cellar together, he learns the hard way just how unfunny claustrophobia is.


So I couldn't stay away for long could I? ;)

of course this weeks Pearl Harbor episode was amazing! Wow it was so fantastic and I was crying by the end of it!

One thing that's been bugging me since I watched it though is this new deal with Danny being claustrophobic. It kinda came out of nowhere in the Halloween episode and I was wondering if they'd bring it up again which they just did. I decided to write this angsty little one shot in which we really see Danny's claustrophobia full-force. I have a bad feeling it's going to happen on the show eventually too.

For my fellow McDanno bromance lovers, enjoy!

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"I'm not going down there Steven," Danny told his partner for the hundredth time. "Not only do we not have a warrant, but you know how I feel about cramped places, and that is a cellar! I'd say that's about as cramped as it gets!"  
"Come on Danno it doesn't look too small down there!" Steve insisted with a laugh. "I'll be right with you the whole time. Besides, when has proper police procedure ever stopped me before?"  
"No," Danny replied.  
"Well I can't go down there alone!" Steve said.  
"And why is that?" He asked. "You afraid of the dark superSEAL?"  
"Of course not!" Steve replied in disgust. "But who is it that always rants at me for going in without backup?"  
"The most dangerous thing you're going to run into down there are dust bunnies Steven," Danny said. "And I trust that you have some classified Navy SEAL training and protocols to protect yourself from them. I will wait here."

Steve sighed. "Alright," he said, starting down the stairs. "Last chance."  
"I think I'm good," Danny replied.

He quickly reached the bottom and shined his flashlight through the cellar. It wasn't that big, but it would be annoying to search it alone. If only he could find a way to get his stubborn partner down here...

He smirked as he came up with something that he knew would get Danny's attention. It would piss his partner off big time, but it would definitely work. He'd deal with Danny's anger later...

"DANNY!" He shouted.

Danny jumped when he heard Steve's shout and then nothing else.

"Steve?!" He called. "Steve are you okay?"  
He cursed when there was no answer. He didn't have much of a choice now, not if Steve could be in trouble. Pulling his gun, he immediately started down into the cellar.

"Steve?" He called again when he reached the bottom. "Steve!"

The sound of his partners laughter has him turning around immediately.

"What the hell?" Danny said angrily.  
"I'm so sorry Danno!" Steve said in between chuckles. "I just needed to get you down here!"

Danny shook his head. "I can't believe you would do that Steve..." He said angrily.  
"Come on Danny-" Steve started to say.

Danny grabbed the flashlight and just ignored him as he started walking around the cellar. He was here now, he may as well have a look around.

He could sense Steve watching him, but he kept ignoring him. He still couldn't believe Steve would do this. Danny had told him before that claustrophobia wasn't something to joke about.

The cellar was dark and smelled like mold. It was definitely much smaller than Danny was comfortable with and he began taking deep calming breaths like his Dad had taught him to when he was a kid.

Steve turned in concern at the change in his partners breathing. "Are you good Danny? Listen I'm sorry man, if it's really too much..."  
"Why start caring now Steven?" He muttered in response. "I thought it was funny."  
"Danny..." He tried.  
"Forget it Steve just look over there and I'll look over here," Danny said.

Steve nodded hesitantly and started looking behind the boxes in the cellar. Danny shined his flashlight around, looking for anything that could point to this guy as their killer.

Over the past week, three teenage girls had been found raped and murdered, dumped in different alleyways around Oahu. They'd finally been able to find a common denominator between the girls in Bobby Raines, a personal trainer that all three visited often.

He wasn't at home, but Danny would bet that there was something down here connecting him to the murders of those girls. The father in him was sick after he saw what had happened to these girls. Telling their fathers hadn't been easy. Not that it ever was, but all Danny could think about was Grace, and how dangerous the world they lived in was. He had to keep Hawaii safe for her, even if it meant raiding small cellars.

He snapped out of his thoughts at the sound of the cellar door slamming closed and Steve's immediate string of curses. Danny turned the flashlight towards the door and swallowed. The room felt ten times smaller with that door closed.

"Steve..." He whispered, forgetting his anger at his partner immediately.

His partner was already up the stairs and pushing at the door. "It's stuck.." He said. "Either it closed on its own or Raines came back and locked us in... Either way, Chin and Kono know where we are and they'll come looking for us."

Danny nodded and swallowed again. He could hold it together for that long... He walked up the stairs and helped Steve try to push the door open but he quickly realized that it was a lost cause. There was no way they were getting out of there without someone opening the door from the outside.

"Let's look around the back of the cellar and see if there's another way out," Steve suggested. "It's pretty dark... You keep the flashlight, I've got the one on my gun. Do you think you can you handle that?"  
Danny only nodded.

They split up again, Steve going left and Danny going right. It wasn't a very big cellar, but Danny prayed that there was some sort of a hatch they could use to get out of there. He continued to breathe deeply, in through his nose and out through his mouth.

He walked around a large box and gasped when he suddenly tripped on something and went sprawling to the floor. The flashlight flew from his grasp and rolled.

Ignoring the now throbbing pain in his knee, Danny started to push himself up when he felt something warm and wet covering his hands. He froze and looked down at his hands, knowing immediately that they would be covered in blood.

His breaths started coming faster and faster when he realized that he had tripped over the body of another dead girl. He was gasping now as he crawled away from the terrified face of the latest victim, creepily illuminated by his fallen flashlight.

Danny shook his head furiously as unwelcome past memories assaulted him. He put his hands over his ears and tried to draw in a proper breath but it was getting harder and harder. He barely even registered Steve shouting his name now as his past assaulted him and his vision started to dim...

_"Word is, everyone who goes into that house ends up dead!" Mattie told him excitedly as they were walking home from school. _  
_"No way!" Danny replied. "Who told you that?" _  
_"All the boys in my class were talking about it!" He insisted. "They say the old man that lives in that house kills and eats all the little kids that go knocking at his door." _  
_"I wouldn't believe everything you hear Mattie," Danny said, although he was now very curious. "Listen buddy, just don't go near that house okay? It's probably not true, but I don't want you getting hurt."_

_Matt nodded and turned to look at the old house at the end of the street. "He's definitely hiding in there somewhere... You shouldn't go there either." He said._

_Danny looked back at the house and smirked. Maybe there was something going on in there... He was never one to turn down a challenge after all._

_Later that night, after Danny had finished his homework and his dinner, he had an idea..._  
_"Hey mom, do you think I could go to Billy's house for a while?" Danny asked. _  
_"What for baby?" She asked him curiously. _  
_"He got this new game for his playstation and he promised I could try it," Danny replied._

_His mom nodded. "Okay. Just be back by 10:30." _  
_"Thanks mom!" He said before giving her a kiss and leaving._

_Danny walked down the dark street and approached the house slowly, making sure that no one was around to see him and that there was no movement from inside the house. He was going to be a cop when he grew up, so he knew he had to be careful about this. It was just like a police investigation._

_He went around to the back of the house and tried the sliding glass door, surprised and a little annoyed to find it unlocked. He had really wanted to try out his new lock picking skills..._

_Danny entered the house quietly and looked around. He didn't see or hear anything, so he continued his investigation. It was dirty and there was dust everywhere. It looked a lot like his room would if his mom didn't clean it all the time._

_He didn't find anything interesting in the downstairs rooms, only some old pictures and furniture. This guy didn't even have a TV. He tiptoed into the kitchen and saw a rickety old door. He immediately pushed it open and listened for any sounds before going down the stairs slowly. He pulled out his mini flashlight and shone it around the small basement. Looking for any clues like he read about in his detective manuals._

_Danny continued his search of the basement when he tripped over something and fell the floor. When he got up, he saw the blood that was covering his hands and clothes._

_He immediately picked up his flashlight and looked down in fear. He gasped at what he saw. His screams drowned out the sound of the basement door slamming closed..._

"DANNY!" Steve was shouting desperately in Danny's face. "Come on bud open your eyes and look at me!"

He continued his attempts to rouse his partner who was now gasping, shaking and screaming like he was having a terrible nightmare. Steve was at a loss. He'd seen the body of the girl but it was nothing Danny hadn't seen before, and Steve had no idea what had spurred this panic attack. He never should have forced his partner down here... God he had no idea how bad it was, he never would've done that if he'd known...

"DANNY!" Steve shouted again in panic. He had no idea what to do... There was no wound, nothing he could fix and he had absolutely no way to help his partner.

Danny's shouting stopped abruptly and Steve shined the flashlight up at his face immediately.

"Danny?" He called. "Can you hear me?"  
"Steve...?" Danny finally whispered. "Get that light out of my face."  
Steve could have laughed in relief. "Yeah buddy, it's me. Can you tell me what happened?"  
"Matt told me not to go to that house..." Danny whispered. "I shouldn't have gone."

Steve was even more panicked now. Danny was still shaking and he was sweating. His breathing was still too fast and shallow for Steve's liking, and now he was worried that his partner was delirious.

"What are you talking about buddy?" Steve asked gently. "What happened?"  
"I was eleven," Danny began quietly. "Matt told me about the guy that lived at the end of our street. He said that he ate the little kids that showed up at his door. I of course didn't believe him, but I just wanted to check it out ya know? I always wanted to be a cop and I thought it would be cool."

Steve nodded and started rubbing his hand over Danny's. They were ice cold and Steve worried about shock. He put his other hand on Danny's back and tried to keep him calm but Danny barely registered his presence as he continued with the story.

"I told my mom I was going to Billy's house one night, but I went to this guys house instead," Danny said. "I went through the back door and started looking around. Eventually, I found the door to the basement. I was checking it out when I tripped over something. It was his body, Steve. He'd shot himself and for days no one even noticed. I had his blood all over me and I was little... I was terrified. I started screaming and ran back up the steps but the door had closed on its own and it was jammed. I couldn't get it open and I was stuck down there with him..."

"Oh man..." Steve whispered. "I'm so sorry Danny... I had no idea..."  
Danny shook his head. "It's okay," he replied. "I was uh... I was stuck down there for five hours until they finally found me. I guess I never really got over it."

Steve nodded. "You were a kid and you went through something traumatic. There's nothing to be ashamed of or embarrassed about. I'm sorry I joked about it before and god I am so so sorry I got you into this Danny! I never should've done what I did..."  
"It's alright," Danny replied, sensing his partners overwhelming guilt. "You couldn't have known how bad it was."  
"You're just saying that because you're too panicked to be angry," Steve pointed out.  
"Probably. Consider yourself lucky," Danny said.

They stopped talking for a little while before Steve realized just how bad of an idea that was. Danny started gasping for air again suddenly and he tried to stand up on shaky legs.

"I need to get out of here Steve!" He gasped out. "I can't... I can't be here. Please I just... I need to get out! Now!"

Steve jumped up but Danny was already off and running towards the door to the cellar. He started beating his fists against it and shouting.

"LET ME OUT!" He screamed frantically. "GET ME OUT OF HERE!"  
"Danny!" Steve shouted, running after his friend and grabbing him before he could hurt himself. "You need to calm down buddy!"

Steve pulled his struggling partner back down the stairs and plopped down onto the floor, wrapping his arms around his friend. He had no training on panic attacks, but he had always been successful at calming a frantic Danny in the past, and he hoped that this time wouldn't be any different.

"Come on Danny," he coached gently, hugging him close. "Breathe slowly for me. In and out. Match your breathing to mine."  
He smiled slightly when he felt Danny trying to do as he said and slow his breathing. "Just like that Danny, you're doing great," Steve said. "In and out. I'm going to get you out of here. I promise. Do you hear me?"

He felt Danny nod his head weakly.

"Chin and Kono will be here soon and I promise you I will never force you into another cellar again," Steve said soothingly.

Danny leaned back against him and tried to match his breathing with Steve's. He was sweating and shaky, but listening to Steve was helping.

"Breathe easy pal," Steve continued. "But stay awake for me, okay?"  
"I'm tired," Danny replied.  
"I know you are but I'm a little worried about you going into shock and we need to avoid another attack buddy," Steve said, gently but sternly. He put his hand on Danny's chest and frowned when he felt it moving up and down faster than his liking. "Just keep your eyes open and focus on moving my hand up and down slowly, huh? Think about Grace. You have her this weekend, what are you guys gonna do?"  
"The movies," Danny replied. "She wants to see the new Twilight movie."  
"Oh well I'm sure you just love that idea," Steve said sarcastically.  
"Not really..." Danny said. "But I'd do anything for her."  
"I know you would," Steve answered. "Because you're such a good father and you love her."  
"You're not so bad yourself Uncle Steve," Danny assured him.  
Steve laughed. "Thanks buddy."

They both looked up immediately as the cellar door started to open.

"Steve? Danny?" They heard Chin call.  
"Chin!" Steve shouted back. "I need a little help down here!"

Steve shook Danny to keep him awake as he heard the footsteps coming down the stairs. Chin and Kono appeared and concern immediately colored their features.

"What happened? Is Danny hurt?" Kono asked worriedly.  
"He's a little shocky," Steve replied.  
"Out," Danny insisted. "I want to get out."  
"Can you help me with him Chin?" Steve asked.

Chin nodded and pulled Danny's arm over one of his shoulders while Steve took the other. They led Danny out of the cellar slowly.

"Raines?" Steve asked over Danny's head.  
"We got him," Chin replied. "He must've seen you guys down here and locked you in. He was packing up to leave when we got here."  
Steve nodded. "Call the crime scene team," he said. "We've got another body. And call an ambulance. I want Danny taken to the hospital to get checked out."  
"Don't need hospital," Danny mumbled stubbornly.  
"Don't start with me Danno," Steve said. "Your breathing is still too fast and you've been shaking like a leaf for two hours. You're going to the hospital if I have to carry you there on my back."  
Danny snorted.

Steve and Chin lowered him gently to the grass but Steve kept his arm around him.

"I'll go help Kono," Chin said, walking away.

"How you doing buddy?" Steve asked.  
"Better now," Danny replied.  
"Didn't I tell you I'd get us out of there?" Steve said, trying to lighten the mood.  
"Technically Kono and Chin got us out of there," Danny reminded him.  
"Details..." Steve replied.

They sat quietly together for a while, enjoying the fresh air and sun. Steve frowned as he got his first good look at his parter. Danny was still pale and slightly shaky and sweat covered his face and his blue striped shirt. His breathing had improved somewhat, but Steve could still see a ghost of a blue tinge around his lips. Where the hell was the ambulance?

"I'm okay Steve," Danny assured him, noticing the close observation.  
"I'm so sorry Danny," Steve said, shaking his head. "I shouldn't have made fun of you and I shouldn't have dragged you into that cellar."  
"It's alright Steve," Danny insisted. "You got me through it. No ones ever helped me out of a panic attack before other than my parents... So thank you."  
"Anytime partner," Steve replied, pulling Danny a little closer. "I got you."

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So as you can all probably tell, I am still dearly missing a big bromance episode like the one with the raft or the time Danny stepped on a bomb but we can all hope!

Thanks so much for reading! Hope you all enjoyed!

Let me know what you think please :)

Cheers!

P.S.- I didn't forget that I owe you guys a sequel to Stalker and as soon as finals are over I'm gonna start working on it ;)


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